A battery-powered train that can recharge in just 3.5 minutes has started trial running on the British network. The class 230 train is being tested by FirstGroup-owned operator Great Western Railway (GWR).
The train was originally built by Vivarail using former London Underground (LU) metro cars, but was purchased by GWR, along with the FastCharge charging technology, after Vivarail went into administration in December 2022.
GWR had already planned to test the train and the FastCharge system under real-world conditions on the 3.8km West Ealing – Greenford branch in west London. However, Vivarail’s collapse delayed the start of the trial.
In the meantime, the train has undergone 1500 hours of testing at the Long Marston Rail Innovation Centre. It will now make trial runs on the national network between Long Marston and Moreton-in-Marsh, before moving on to the Greenford branch this spring.
Once there it will run a scheduled service, although it will not carry passengers. Charge rails and lineside battery banks have been installed at West Ealing. The FastCharge system uses short charge rails which are fully covered by the train and are only live when the train is charging.
The train charges using retractable shoegear from the charge rails, which are fed by two trackside battery banks. These are continuously trickle-charged from the national electricity supply network via a 63A connection that can deliver up to 2kW.
“This work has never been done before,” says GWR engineering director, Dr Simon Green, “and we’re leading the way to help the Department for Transport and Network Rail understand what is required to roll out this technology on the UK’s rail network.”
“Only now has there been a combination of battery capability and charging technology that enables a branch line train to operate to the same timetable as a diesel unit, and yet still charge safely and with minimal impact on the local grid power supply.”
The class 230 is seen as a potential solution for replacing diesel-powered trains on branch lines. It has a range of up to 100km between recharging.
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